The KrAZ-255 is a

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

(formerly

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

) three-axle off-road truck with

six-wheel drive Six-wheel drive (6WD or 6×6) is an all-wheel drive drivetrain configuration of three axles with at least two wheels on each axle capable of being driven simultaneously by the vehicle's engine. Unlike four-wheel drive drivetrains, the configurat ...

(6 × 6), intended for extreme operations. It was manufactured at the

KrAZ KrAZ ( uk, Кременчуцький автомобільний завод, ''Kremenchutskyi Avtomobilnyi Zavod'', Kremenchuk Automobile Plant, АвтоКрА́З or AvtoKrAZ) is a Ukrainian factory that produces trucks and other special-purpos ...

plant beginning from 1967. The KrAZ-255 was developed directly from its predecessor, the

KrAZ-214 The KrAZ-214 is an off-road truck 6x6 for extreme operations.Н. Чистов. Модернизированный КрАЗ // "За рулём", № 10, октябрь 1961. стр.14 It was manufactured at the YaMZ plant from 1956-1959, after whi ...

(produced 1956-1967). Despite being very similar at first glance (both using the same cab, flatbed as well as the suspension), there are few major differences. Firstly, the 255 used new and much more powerful engine - the YaMZ-238 (same used in

MT-LB The MT-LB (russian: Многоцелевой Тягач Легкий Бронированный, translit=Mnogotselevoy tyagach legky bronirovanny, literally "multi-purpose towing vehicle light armored") is a Soviet multi-purpose, fully amphibi ...

tracked APC), replacing the previously used and sensibly weaker YaAZ-206B which was used in 214. The 255 also featured new and more reliable transmission, the YaMZ-236N, instead of the previously used YaAZ-204. It also featured new headlights (which were now, together with

turn signals The lighting system of a motor vehicle consists of lighting and signalling devices mounted to or integrated into the front, rear, sides, and in some cases the top of a motor vehicle. They illuminate the road ahead for the driver and increase th ...

, located in their own housings mounted on the fenders) and, most notably, much wider tires (1300 x 530 x 533 in dimensions), which offered lighter ground pressure and thus, even greater off-road capabilities when compared to its predecessor. Along with

Ural Ural may refer to: *Ural (region), in Russia and Kazakhstan *Ural Mountains, in Russia and Kazakhstan *Ural (river), in Russia and Kazakhstan * Ual (tool), a mortar tool used by the Bodo people of India *Ural Federal District, in Russia *Ural econ ...

ZiL OJSC AMO ZiL, known fully as the Public Joint-Stock Company – Likhachov Plant () and more commonly called ZiL (, was a major Russian automobile, truck, military vehicle, and heavy equipment manufacturer that was based in Moscow, Russia. The la ...

, Kamaz,

GAZ GAZ or Gorkovsky Avtomobilny Zavod (russian: ГАЗ or Го́рьковский автомоби́льный заво́д, , Gorky Automobile Plant) is a Russian automotive manufacturer located in Nizhny Novgorod, formerly known as Gorky (Го� ...

and

MAZ Maz or MAZ may refer to: * IATA code for Eugenio María de Hostos Airport, Mayagüez, Puerto Rico * Minsk Automobile Plant, abbreviated in Belarusian as MAZ * Myc-associated zinc finger protein, a protein encoded by the ''MAZ'' gene * Maz, a vill ...

, the KrAZ once represented one of six models of cargo/towing trucks (in its basic version, the KrAZ-255B) used by the

Soviet Armed Forces The Soviet Armed Forces, the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union and as the Red Army (, Вооружённые Силы Советского Союза), were the armed forces of the Russian SFSR (1917–1922), the Soviet Union (1922–1991), and th ...

, as well as by many civilian organizations in the former Soviet Union (mainly by various construction plants), where it was also used as a logging (the KrAZ-255L/L1) and dump truck (the KrAZ-256). In contrast to other above mentioned models (with the exception of MAZ), the KrAZ was the only which was never produced inside

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

(then

Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...

), since it was manufactured exclusively in then

Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

(nowadays Ukraine), at the city of

Kremenchuk Kremenchuk (; uk, Кременчу́к, Kremenchuk ) is an industrial city in central Ukraine which stands on the banks of the Dnipro River. The city serves as the administrative center of the Kremenchuk Raion (district) in Poltava Oblast (pr ...

. Since the KrAZ-255 was the heaviest (weighing 12

ton Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean * the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds ...

s empty) and most powerful (using a 14,900 ccm engine, producing 240 hp/180 kw) of all Soviet three-axle (6 × 6) military cargo trucks, it was most often used for towing heavier

artillery pieces Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

(such as

D-74 The 122mm D-74 towed gun is a Soviet-built gun. Developed in the late 1950s it provided direct and indirect fire for the Soviet Army. Today it is in reserve units with the Russian Army. It is in active service with the Egyptian Army and the Pakis ...

, M-46 and 2A65 howitzers or T-12 anti-tank gun) and also for towing various aircraft from their

hangar A hangar is a building or structure designed to hold aircraft or spacecraft. Hangars are built of metal, wood, or concrete. The word ''hangar'' comes from Middle French ''hanghart'' ("enclosure near a house"), of Germanic origin, from Frankish ...

s to

runway According to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and takeoff of aircraft". Runways may be a man-made surface (often asphalt concrete, as ...

s, or vice versa (in tractor-unit version, the KrAZ-255V). Furthemore, it was also used as a platform for control cabin and the antennas of PRV-9/1RL19 ''Naklon'' ( NATO reporting name: "Thin-Skin") and PRV-16/1RL132 ''Nadyozhnost'' (NATO reporting name: "Odd-Pair") Soviet height-finding radars, as well as for various

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

duties in specially-designed versions (such as PMP collapsible

ferryboat A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

intended to be used as a

pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, uses floats or shallow-draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the supports limits the maximum load that they can carry. ...

and TMM-3 mobile

bridgelayer An armoured vehicle-launched bridge (AVLB) is a combat support vehicle, sometimes regarded as a subtype of military engineering vehicle, designed to assist militaries in rapidly deploying tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles across gap- ...

), which are still being used today by various military forces across the globe. The KrAZ-255 ultimately evolved into a new model as its successor in 1979, the

KrAZ-260 The KrAZ-260 is an off-road truck 6x6 for extreme operations. It was manufactured at the KrAZ plant. Technical characteristics *Engine: 14.86 L diesel 8 cyl. *Power: 300 PS /2100rpm *Torque: 1079Nm /1500rpm *Top speed: 80 km/h Variants * Kr ...

, whose only difference was a new design of cab and the interiors. Despite that however, the KrAZ-260 did not replace it in production, but was actually produced alongside it up until 1994, when both were finally discontinued in favor to

KrAZ-6322 The KrAZ-6322 is an off-road 6x6 truck intended for extreme conditions. It was first presented at the 1994 defence industry trade show in Kyiv, Ukraine. The KrAZ-6322 has been manufactured at the KrAZ factory in Kremenchuk since 1994. Technic ...

(a modernized model of KrAZ-260), which is still being produced today in Ukraine.

Technical characteristics

*Engine: 14.86 L diesel 8 cyl. *Power: 240 PS /2100 rpm *Torque: 883 Nm /1500 rpm *Top speed: 71 km/h (44 mph)

Variants

* KrAZ-255B (''КрАЗ-255Б'')Кременчугский автомобильный завод имени 50-летия Советской Украины // Большая Советская Энциклопедия / под ред. А. М. Прохорова. 3-е изд. том 13. М., «Советская энциклопедия», 1973. стр.373 - 12-ton cargo truckКременчугский автомобильный завод имени 50-летия Советской Украины // Украинская Советская Энциклопедия. том 5. Киев, «Украинская Советская энциклопедия», 1981. стр.399 Mass production started since 8 August 1967 :* KrAZ-255B1 (''КрАЗ-255Б1'') - cargo truck, mass production started since 1979Автомобили КрАЗ // журнал "Автомобильная промышленность", № 8, 1984. стр.30-31 * KrAZ-255V (''КрАЗ-255В'') -

tractor unit A tractor unit (also known as a truck unit, power unit, prime mover, ten-wheeler, semi-tractor, tractor truck, semi-truck, tractor cab, truck cab, tractor rig, truck rig or big rig or simply a tractor, truck, semi or rig) is a characteristical ...

* KrAZ-255L (''КрАЗ-255Л'') - 23-ton

log truck A logging truck or timber lorry is a large truck used to carry logs. Some have integrated flatbeds, some are discrete tractor units, and some are configured to spread a load between the tractor unit and a dollied trailer pulled behind it. Ofte ...

:* KrAZ-255L1 (''КрАЗ-255Л1'') - log truck, mass production started since 1980 * KrAZ-256 (''КрАЗ-256'') - 12-ton

dump truck A dump truck, known also as a dumping truck, dump trailer, dumper trailer, dump lorry or dumper lorry or a dumper for short, is used for transporting materials (such as dirt, gravel, or demolition waste) for construction as well as coal. A t ...

* ATZ-8,5 (''АТЗ-8,5'') -

fuel tanker A tank truck, gas truck, fuel truck, or tanker truck (American English) or tanker (British English) is a motor vehicle designed to carry liquids or gases on roads. The largest such vehicles are similar to railroad tank cars, which are also desi ...

on KrAZ-255 chassis * КS-3572 (''КС-3572'') - military crane on KrAZ-255 chassisПерспективи розвитку озброєння та військової техніки Сухопутних військ: Збірник тез доповідей Міжнародної науково-технічної конференції (Львів, 17-18 травня 2018 року). Львів, НАСВ, 2018. стор.264 * EOV-4421 (''ЭОВ-4421'') - military excavator on KrAZ-255 chassis * ТММ-3 (''Tyazhyolyy Mekhanizirovannyy Most'') -

on KrAZ-255 chassis, since 1974 * PMP (''Pontonno-Mostovoy Park'') -

on KrAZ-255 chassis * PRV-9 and PRV-16 (''Podvizhnyy Radiolokatsionnyy Vysotomer'') - height-finding radars on KrAZ-255 chassis. * 122mm

BM-21 Grad The BM-21 "Grad" (russian: БМ-21 "Град", lit= hail) is a self-propelled 122 mm multiple rocket launcher designed in the Soviet Union. The system and the M-21OF rocket were first developed in the early 1960s, and saw their first com ...

on KrAZ-255 chassis - several vehicles were made in Tajikistan"''удивили реактивные установки залпового огня БМ-21 на шасси знаменитых "лаптежников" - КрАЗ-255. Все привыкли видеть "Грады" на платформах бензиновых и дизельных версий "Уралов" и КамАЗ-5350, о такой версии РСЗО ранее ничего не было известно''"
Алексей Моисеев. Реактивный "лаптежник": КрАЗы с РСЗО "Град" заметили в Таджикистане // "Российская газета" от 25 февраля 2020 * Jupiter - 130mm self-propelled gun (a Soviet 130mm field gun M-46 on KrAZ-255B chassis), several vehicles were made in Cuba * PTH130-K255B - 130mm self-propelled gun (a Soviet 130mm field gun M-46 on KrAZ-255B chassis). One test prototype was made in VietnamPháo tự hành 130mm "Made in Vietnam": Bước nhảy vọt về cơ giới hóa - Học bạn tốt Cuba?
// "SOHA" от 1 ноября 2021

Operators

Current operators

* -

Armed Forces of Belarus The Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus (, ) consist of the Ground Forces and the Air Force and Air Defence Forces, all under the command of the Republic of Belarus Ministry of Defence. Being a landlocked country, Belarus has no navy. In 20 ...

* * -

Hungarian Armed Forces The Hungarian Defence Forces ( hu, Magyar Honvédség) is the national defence force of Hungary. Since 2007, the Hungarian Armed Forces is under a unified command structure. The Ministry of Defence maintains the political and civil control over ...

* -

Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces The Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces ( es, Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias; FAR) are the military forces of Cuba. They include ground forces, naval forces, air and air defence forces, and other paramilitary bodies including the Territorial T ...

* * * - In April 2016, it was announced that

Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan The Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan ( kk, Қазақстан Республикасының Қарулы Күштері, , russian: Вооружённые силы Республики Казахстан) is the unified armed forces of ...

would begin replacing KrAZ-255B trucks with new KamAZ trucks * * -

Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova The Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Forțele Armate ale Republicii Moldova) consist of the National Army (which is divided into the Land Forces Command and the Air Forces Command) and the Trupele de Carabinieri under the Ministry ...

* * * * - Russian Armed Forces * -

Serbian Armed Forces The Serbian Armed Forces ( sr, Војска Србије, Vojska Srbije) is the military of Serbia. The President of Serbia acts as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, while administration and defence policy is carried out by the Government ...

* -

Armed Forces of the Republic of Tajikistan The Armed Forces of the Republic of Tajikistan (russian: Вооружённые силы Таджикистана; tg, Қувваҳои Мусаллаҳи Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Quvvahoi Musallahi Jumhurii Tojikiston), also known ...

* -

Ukrainian Armed Forces , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine , country=Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly know ...

Алексей Брусилов. Старые КрАЗы, "шишиги" и ЗиЛы составили основу автопарка ВСУ // "Российская газета" от 1 марта 2022 *

Former operators

* * * :

Finnish Army The Finnish Army ( Finnish: ''Maavoimat'', Swedish: ''Armén'') is the land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces. The Finnish Army is divided into six branches: the infantry (which includes armoured units), field artillery, anti-aircraf ...

Gallery

Kraz255b.jpg, KrAZ-255B Finnish_Artillery_Museum_009_-_KrAZ-255_PMP_(26792351279).jpg, KrAZ-255 platform for PMP pontoon-bridge, Finland На Дніпропетровщині десантники вдосконалюють професійну майстерність під час бригадних тактичних навчань (30128341975).jpg, KrAZ-255 ferrying on its own PMP pontoon-bridge, Ukraine Bulgarian Excavator on KrAZ-truck.jpg, EOV-4421, Bulgaria KrAZ 255 mit Fortschritt HTS 100 Tank.jpg, KrAZ-255B, Germany КрAз 255 6x6 pic3.JPG, KrAZ-255B on the "War and Peace Show", United Kingdom КрAз 255 6x6 pic4.JPG, KrAZ-255B on the "War and Peace Show", United Kingdom KrAZ, 12. Internationales Maritimes-Fahrzeugtreffen, Ribnitz-Damgarten ( 1060752).jpg, KrAZ-255B, Germany KrAZ, 12. Internationales Maritimes-Fahrzeugtreffen, Ribnitz-Damgarten (P1060517).jpg, KrAZ-255B, Germany Pfingsttreffen_Puetnitz_2018%2C_Ribnitz-Damgarten_(1X7A2629).jpg, KrAZ-255B, Germany A_Magyar_Néphadsereg_fegyverzete_-_PRV_16-A_magasságmérő_lokátor_(8).JPG, PRV-16/1RL132 height-finding radar on KrAZ-255 in folded/transport configuration, Hungary PRV-16 01.JPG, PRV-16/1RL132 height-finding radar on KrAZ-255 in raised/working configuration, Hungary PMP KrAS-255 JM 1.jpg, PMP pontoon bridge on KrAZ-255, Hungary OpenWater2017qualifying-31.jpg, PMP pontoon bridge on KrAZ-255, Russia OpenWater2017qualifying-29.jpg, PMP pontoon bridge on KrAZ-255, Russia OpenWater2017qualifying-30.jpg, PMP pontoon bridge on KrAZ-255, Russia КрАЗ-255Б1.jpg, KrAZ-255B, Ukraine KrAZ-255B military truck.jpg, KrAZ-255B, Russia KrAZ-255B kran VS 01.jpg, KrAZ-255B,

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

KrAZ-255B VS 05.jpg, KrAZ-255B,

Kraz_monino.jpg, KrAZ-255V

References

{{KrAZ KrAZ vehicles Military trucks of the Soviet Union Military trucks of Ukraine Military vehicles introduced in the 1960s